The Games I Beat in 2025: Q1

January

Game 1: Mario & Luigi: Brothership

Developer: Acquire
Played on: Switch
Release: 2025

Playtime: 45 hours 4 minutes
Rating: 6.5
Thoughts: Mario & Luigi: Brothership possesses everything it needs to be the best entry in the series, but it's bogged down by bad pacing, poor performance, and a padded runtime.

Source: Nintendo

Game 2: Haiku, the Robot

Developer: Mister Morris Games
Played on: Steam Deck
Release: 2022

Playtime: 6 hours 42 minutes
Rating: 8.5
Thoughts: Haiku, the Robot is a well-built and highly engaging search action game that doesn't hold your hand.

Source: Steam

Game 3: Blade Chimera

Developer: Team Ladybug
Played on: Steam Deck via Family Sharing
Release: 2025

Playtime: 8 hours 18 minutes
Rating: 9
Thoughts: Team Ladybug makes some of the finest search action games in the industry. Blade Chimera is another addition to that legacy.

Source: Nintendo

February

Game 4: Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance

Developer: Atlus
Played on: PS5
Release: 2024

Playtime: 65 hours 24 minutes
Rating: 9
Thoughts: With improved performance over the Switch original, a fully-featured new story route, and great QOL features, Vengeance is the definitive version of Shin Megami Tensei V.

Source: Nintendo

Game 5: Drainus

Developer: Team Ladybug
Played on: Steam Deck
Release: 2022

Playtime: 4 hours
Rating: 7.5
Thoughts: While Drainus offers excellent minute-to-minute gameplay that pushes the genre into new directions, a poor story and lack of level variety in the back half hurt the overall package.

Source: Nintendo

DLC 1: God of War Ragnarök — Valhalla

Developer: Santa Monica Studios
Played on: PS5
Release: 2023

Playtime: 13 hours 15 minutes
Rating: 8.5
Thoughts: Valhalla cuts the padding of the main story to focus on what God of War Ragnarök excels at — character development and combat.

Source: Entertainium

DLC 2: Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown — Mask of Darkness

Developer: Ubisoft Montpellier
Played on: Switch
Release: 2024

Playtime: 3 hours 28 minutes
Rating: 6
Thoughts: Mask of Darkness' attempt to raise the difficulty is a completely unnecessary annoyance.

Source: Nintendo

Game 6: Pepper Grinder

Developer: Ahr Ech
Played on: Switch
Release: 2024

Playtime: 3 hours 22 minutes
Rating: 7.5
Thoughts: Pepper Grinder is too short for its own good. As such, the game never truly sees all its cool concepts to their fullest.

Source: Nintendo

Game 7: Transference

Developer: SpectreVision and Ubisoft Montreal
Played on: PS5 via PS+
Release: 2018

Playtime: 1 hour 46 minutes
Rating: 5
Thoughts: Without the gimmick of virtual reality, Transference is just a standard horror-themed walking simulator with an interesting, albeit bleak, story.

Source: Polygon

Game 8: Alan Wake Remastered

Developer: Remedy Entertainment and d3t
Played on: Series X
Release: 2021

Playtime: 11 hours 13 minutes
Rating: 9
Thoughts: Although individual aspects of Alan Wake are clunky and unrefined, they all weave together into an incredibly cohesive whole.

Source: TechRadar

Game 9: Entwined

Developer: Pixelopus
Played on: PS5 via PS+
Release: 2014

Playtime: 1 hour 49 minutes
Rating: 5.5
Thoughts: Entwined is a cool concept that fails to execute. The controls aren't tight enough to make it a fun action game and it's too difficult to be a source of relaxation.

Source: Digital Trends

Game 10: Alan Wake's American Nightmare

Developer: Remedy Entertainment and Nitro Games
Played on: Steam Deck
Release: 2012

Playtime: 4 hours 36 minutes
Rating: 8
Thoughts: While not as grand in terms of story and characters, Alan Wake's American Nightmare delivers in terms of tighter mechanics.

Source: Steam

Game 11: Mario vs. Donkey Kong

Developer: Nintendo Software Technology
Played on: Switch
Release: 2024

Playtime: 7 hours 30 minutes
Rating: 8
Thoughts: When unhampered by the GBA's limitations and stringent controls, Mario vs. Donkey Kong becomes a much more enjoyable experience.

Source: My Nintendo News

Game 12: Quantum Break

Developer: Remedy Entertainment
Played on: Series X
Release: 2016

Playtime: 12 hours 58 minutes
Rating: 4.5
Thoughts: I applaud the ambitious premise and appreciate Quantum Break's take on third-person shooting. However, I can’t recommend a game with a broken checkpoint system.

Source: PC Gamer

March

Game 13: Control

Developer: Remedy Entertainment
Played on: PS5
Release: 2021

Playtime: 11 hours 35 minutes
Rating: 8
Thoughts: While Control underwhelms in terms of its core cast and level design, it excels in world-building and minute-to-minute gameplay.

Source: Remedy Entertainment

DLC 3: Control — The Foundation

Developer: Remedy Entertainment
Played on: PS5
Release: 2021

Playtime: 5 hours 22 minutes
Rating: 7
Thoughts: While The Foundation provides a well-designed new area to explore, it shines a spotlight on Control's arbitrary difficulty curve.

Source: Eurogamer

DLC 4: Control — AWE

Developer: Remedy Entertainment
Played on: PS5
Release: 2021

Playtime: 2 hours 55 minutes
Rating: 7.5
Thoughts: AWE is a short and sweet prologue to the events of Alan Wake II.

Source: Rock Paper Shotgun

Game 14: Alan Wake II

Developer: Remedy Entertainment
Played on: PS5
Release: 2023

Playtime: 27 hours 10 minutes
Rating: 9.5
Thoughts: Alan Wake II seamlessly blends the mediums of video games, film, and music into an unforgettable experience.

Source: PlayStation

DLC 5: Alan Wake II — Night Springs

Developer: Remedy Entertainment
Played on: PS5
Release: 2024

Playtime: 2 hours 23 minutes
Rating: 8
Thoughts: Night Springs' short stories hit far more than they miss.

Source: NextPlay

DLC 6: Alan Wake II — The Lake House

Developer: Remedy Entertainment
Played on: PS5
Release: 2024

Playtime: 3 hours 5 minutes
Rating: 8.5
Thoughts: The Lake House is a great addendum to Alan Wake II.

Source: Epic Games